This article is going to share a story about something that took place this week which points to something much bigger with Hive.
We will start with a simple question:
- What is your Hive reputation worth?
By this, we are not referring to the number next to your username. Instead, we mean the reputation that you carry. For those who understand urban terminology, on the streets people have "reps". This is the reputation some have, mostly for violence, that others understand and respect.
So what is your Hive reputation worth? Is it something that you value? Do you work to ensure it is as strong as possible?
Here we will start to break it apart.
Selling My Rep For $5K
Earlier in the week I posted this idea on threads:
Would you send me $5K under the following conditions:
- you don't know my real name
- you do not know where I live
- you do not have my phone and have never talked or text me
Under those conditions would you send me $5K in hopes that I would reciprocate?
At first glance many would say "no". But is that the case on Hive?
To make this story short, that is exactly what happened. There was an agreement to do a swap, one that involved another blockchain. This individual sent me $5K worth of USDT without any assurances other than my reputation that I would send the money in return.
Why would someone do that?
The simple answer is that it is easy to see I value my reputation a lot more than $5,000. Over the years, I wrote about the potentiality of this place. We do not know what the future holds. However, if many of us are correct, having a strong rep on Hive will be a value asset to have.
In other words, there might be people who have reputations worth millions of dollars (rep not money in their wallet; they are different). This could give them access to things other do not simply because of the view people have of them.
Hive Is Different Then Other Ecosystems
Let us compare this to Bitcoin or Ethereum.
If I was a maxi for either of these coins, what would I do? I would likely be on social media like Twitter espousing how Bitcoin was the best thing ever. As I kept at it, showing myself dedicated to BTC, others would follow. In the end, I would interact, daily with other maxis over years.
After a period of time, I would have close Bitcoin "friends". We would support each other on Twitter, taking on all shitcoiners. The bond would be strong.
Naturally, I might only know these people as BitcoinGod or BadAssBitcoiner. That would be sufficient in the digital world.
Let us them touch upon the need for some money. Perhaps I got into a bind and I wanted to swap some BTC for cash. Could I go to by Bitcoin "friends" and get it from them? Perhaps. But who would send the money first? If I sent the BTC to them, what happens if they did not complete the transaction?
I could take to Twitter and complain. What would happen then? Most would say that I deserve it for sending money to a stranger on the Internet. They would be right.
The reality is no matter how much I "knew" them, there is nothing at risk. Their Twitter rep as a Bitcoin evangelist means little in the end. While it might be important, it has little to do with the success tied to their Bitcoin holdings.
We can see how Hive is completely different. Our Hive reputation is tied to a lot more than just an investment in the coins.
Do You Focus Upon Your Reputation?
Again, we are not talking about the number next to one's name.
We often talk about being a brand on Hive. Recently, we saw some mainstream companies who might have done permanent damage to their reputations. Time will tell on that one. However, it is crucial to remember that reputation takes years to build and can be destroyed with a single actions.
That said, how much effort do you put towards your reputation? Are you constantly looking for ways to improve it? Of course, it all centers on the actions one takes. That is what people have to judge us by.
This is a topic few discuss on Hive. The question is would someone send you money without having any of the information I listed above? If not, what are you going to do to get to that point.
All of this boils down to trust. Do people trust you, even total strangers?
We are likely looking at a time, if we aren't there already, where one's online reputation is going to be as valuable as in the real world. This is more focused upon our digital personas which, with the emergence of Web 3.0, have value.
This article is just one example how that is the case.
If more people approached Hive with the mindset of improving their reputation, we might see a difference course of action. After all, we are all developing a reputation through our actions. The spammers are quickly identified and given a reputation that is very difficult to break. We see the same of those who seek simply to extract from Hive.
All of this takes place without us paying attention. Therefore, what is your Hive reputation worth to you and are you working at increasing it as much as possible.
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